The year 2024 had been a great running year. I was on my 3rd race of the year, the Utah Valley Half Marathon. As I hit mile 10, my right hip simply quit working. It wasn't necessarily painful, it was just not there. I wasn't about to quit, so I did about 3 miles of a limp/hop/walk process and finished. I thought it was a simple injury or strain, so I rested a few weeks. It still wasn't right, so I tried a workout routine from Peleton "You can learn to run!". Each day, I'd go out, follow the program, hoping things would get better. Most days, I'd still limp about a mile, then it would finally loosen up a bit. But if I pushed much past 2 miles, I was done. As the symptoms worsened, things like raising my leg while lying down started to hurt. I'd have an occasional shooting pain when I climbed into a vehicle. Eventually, I could no longer lie on my right side, and would end up sleeping most of the night in a recliner. I finally went to the doctor, and he told me pretty much what I expected. My right hip is trash. I need a new one. I'm not super eager for that, so I went to a specialist and received a steroid injection. That has helped for over 2 months now. It's wearing off, but as long as I can get an injection every few months, I can continue to put off the surgery. I really need my wife to go one summer without having one! My doctor did tell me running was off the table for me.
I've gone through the steps of grief on this one, but I've finally accepted it. My exercise is currently walking, which honestly, is not so bad. I'm still doing some PT on my hip to hopefully help and buy me more time before having it addressed surgically. Life is good. I'm back on Keto and dropping some pounds, I have a great family who all live close, I really can't complain. I work from my Disney office at home, we are positioned to retire at 65. Nobody knows how much time they have left, but I'm going to make the most of mine.
I've been looking back on my running history, and decided to attempt to create a top 10 list of runs.
Number one has to be the 2005 St. George marathon, the one that started it all. Gary walked in the office one morning, and announced we were either climbing Mount Everest or running a marathon. Faced with that choice, I said let's start running. I remember well my first run after that. I made it about half a block before I thought I would die. We found an 18 week preparation program to follow. My entire office wall was a white marker board where we tracked our runs for all 18 weeks. I wish I had a picture of that artwork. We talked 3 other office members into running with us. 3 days a week, we would go to lunch at 10 am to run, and usually not make it back before 1 pm. Our manager was supportive. She knew we'd make up the time. Our other office friends endured 18 weeks of non-stop running talk. It's literally all we did. Eat, sleep, run, repeat. As we would build up and taper, we'd reach new milestones. Our first double digit run. Sitting down and planning out each long run. Going on drives to figure out mileage. Purchasing Garmins, which at the time were the best way to track runs and were roughly the size of a Bible.
Race day was magical. We rode the bus up together. I just kept thinking the driver had messed up. We obviously had driven too far! We reached the starting area. The atmosphere was electric. We started running before the sun was fully up. They say the St. George marathon is a downhill course. What they fail to tell you is the first 13 miles are actually uphill! I remember hitting the summit, surrounded by the red rocks of St. George and looking down. I was so relieved. I'd never gone over 20 miles, and around mile 23 I encountered "the wall". I battled through, determined to meet our goal. We were all shooting to come in under 5 hours. I saw the crowds, saw my family, and cried. What an emotional experience, as I crossed the finish line in 4 hours, 57 minutes. I don't know that a person learns more about their soul than on a run like that. Prayers were said and answered, and lessons were learned about what a person is capable of. Gary is still like a brother.
It's hard to rate the other runs in any sort of proper order. I guess number two would be the 2024 Disneyland half marathon. This had been a bucket list item of mine in the 2000s, but the race actually went away for years. When it was brought back, I HAD to do it. To my delight, Alyssa and Braden were in as well. RunDisney is famous for races selling out immediately, websites crashing during registration and a host of roadblocks to get signed up. We were on our computers, ready to pounce at the set moment. And you know what, we did it. I even snagged a registration for Traven. It sold out quickly, but I think Jason had FOMO and wanted to do the 10k. I signed up for RunDisney alerts, and surprisingly, a 10k spot opened up and I got Jason in! Combining a Disney trip with a race was magical! The race started at like 4 AM so they could get us through the park before it opened. I will never forget the thrill of running through both parks. I was so into it I almost tripped on Main Street USA! The race had some bottlenecks of people where we either stopped or slowed to a snails pace, but I didn't mind. It took me around 3 hours, but I felt so good. I felt like I could easily run a marathon at that pace. The 10k was the day before the half, and I loved going over early and cheering on big J as he finished. Doing the prep for, and participating in, a race with 4 of my children was awesome as well.
I think the 2023 Snow Canyon half would probably be number 3. This was Jason's first half, and I loved that for him. This one was all about the finish for me. Snow Canyon is a BRUTAL descent, and my feet did not fair well. The blistering was so bad I could hardly walk after. I used my phone and it looked like Alyssa was close. She was struggling as well, and we joined forces for the last few miles. I don't think I would have made it without her. Traven finished well before us, but came back and ran some with us at the end. And he also found Jason and finished with him. Oh, to have the stamina of a teenager!
For number four, I don't recall the exact year, but I had taken some time off from running. Braden convinced me to run the St. George half with him, and he promised to stay with me. And he was good to his word. We ran an entire 13.1 miles together. Such a fun experience.
I ran a 5k with my grandson Mason. It was a "Hobble Before You Gobble" in Springville. Mason was 6 years old I think? I figured we'd run some, walk some, maybe not even finish. But that dude was a STUD! He found his pace and we ran the entire thing. It was so cool to see him make the decision to not walk and just keep going. I asked him a few times if he needed a break, but that was a solid NO from him. I'll put this at the five spot, but honestly 2 - 5 could easily switch around.
The 2006 Ragnar Wasatch Back has to be in this list as well. This was a first for me in planning. The logistics of 12 runners, each doing 3 legs of the race, was daunting. Dividing us into 2 teams, finding another driver for the second "van", meal planning, figuring out the optimal placement for each runner, estimating our pace - it was lot, but so worth it. The race was smaller and more intimate at this point, and we started up at Hardware Ranch in Logan Canyon. I went on to captain 6 of these races. I went from strictly Novell coworkers to eventually having teams from my neighborhood. And I don't think any of my neighbors regret the experience.
2024 Ragnar Zion as also fun to organize a team for, and it allowed me to spend time with my son in law Dallin and some of his family. This race was BRUTAL for me. I think at one point I stated I'd rather run a marathon than do it again. But it was still a party, and the Hendersons are addicted. They had two teams in it this year!
I guess that puts me at around 7 races, if I lump all the Wasatch Back events together. I'd probably lump my San Diego and Top of Utah marathons in here together at the eight spot. For me, any marathon finished belongs on here. The last one I attempted was St. George with Braden, and I may or may not have passed out and ended up in the "meat wagon" somewhere around mile 22.
Hobble Creek around 2022 would be in here. It was a PR half for me, the scenery was epic, and I not only beat Braden, but I got to be amazed by Alyssa running a half with zero prep. She's a tough one.
I'll put 2024 Utah Valley on here, as it was my only half were I was alone (no friends or family) and it was my last race.
I'll dedicate the 10 spot to all the random memories I have from running.
- Terry Wong tipping over a potapotty trailer.
- Terry Wong running a mile in the dark, in the wrong direction.
- My first race. It was a 10 miler, and where I learned to run at MY pace. I probably ran the fastest 7 miles of my life, only to completely crash and get passed again and again and again as my body gave out.
- Alyssa keeping Braden moving for the Disneyland Half.
- The dude that put on Provo canyon races with no medals, no real plan and questionable routes.
Now, I'm happy to be the support staff / cheer squad as my family continues on with running.
